Millions freezing: Russian governors declare emergency as millions need to be evacuated fast

The war is increasingly expanding beyond the battlefield into the systems that keep states functioning in winter. Energy infrastructure has become a strategic pressure point, where disruption translates directly into civilian hardship, political strain, and loss of control. For years, Moscow assumed that distance and scale would insulate the Russian rear from the kinds of vulnerabilities it exploited in Ukraine. That assumption is now eroding as strikes and failures expose how centralized and overstretched Russia’s energy network has become. The deeper the war penetrates into civilian systems, the harder it becomes for authorities to compartmentalize its consequences. Against this backdrop, developments across the Russian Federation signal a shift toward a conflict where resilience at home is becoming as critical as strength at the front.